Lorne's Angel Part one
by CI-KiteWolfling-NYPD
Summary: Lorne is sitting in Caritas, minding his own business...when SHE steps up the mic. What does this dark demoness have to hide? Why can't Lorne think straight around her? It's not love, it's a darker power, darker than even he can imagine..
1. Behind those Scarlet eyes

Lorne watched the dark demoness step up to the mic, and he cocked an eyebrow. Though it was infinitely hard to tell with any sort of demon, he thought her to be only roughly two-hundred years old, young by most standards. He had been keeping an eye on her most of the night, secretly hoping that she would sing and let him into her mind. She was a demon whose kind he couldn't identify-which honestly made him rather nervous. Darkness was her aura, and Lorne quickly deducted that she was a shadow spawned offspring

The demon pushed her hair behind her rather pointed elven ears, and piercing red eyes darted over to the jukebox.

Lorne folded his hands delicately over each other, and waited. He was almost eager to read this one!

He closed his eyes as the first few bars of Switchfoots, 'Dare You To Move' washed over him, accompanied by several emotions at once-pain, weariness, desperation, and a sort of a grim resolute. The demons past was clouded by a sort of intangible lock the Lorne couldn't even try to get past. It was almost like she had set up a fine mental block for herself.

Then all of a sudden the pain came.

Brilliant blue flashes of light sparked in Lorne's mind, striking him with such mental ferocity that it almost seemed like a physical blow. The demon girls past and future was dark…even darker that any demon in the bar. Lorne had a feeling she knew it.

Lorne nearly slipped out of his chair. He couldn't tear himself away from the singing. It was almost as intriguing and terrible as the time the two drunk Hibikimenes had stepped up the mic, and sang their twisted hearts out…Right now he would have taken the horrible screeching of those two demons at the moment than the ballad of pain and sorrow he was feeling now.

Finally, the demon girls song was over. Pain, blackness, and stars winked infront of Lorne's eyes, as polite applause drifted over the bar.

Lorne motioned for the girl to come over and join in at his table.

"Lovely song, dear," He sighed, wiping his forehead, "May I buy you a drink?"

"No thank you, I have had enough free drinks from demons like you." She said coolly, slipping into the seat opposite him with a shrug.

Lorne cracked a genuine grin. The girl swept that silky black, scarlet highlighted, hair behind one ear. She sure was a looker, even on human standards!

"What on earth and below do you mean by, 'demons like me'?" Lorne asked, tipping his chair back precariously, and stirring his drink. There was a little more venom in his voice than he had hoped to put in that statement. After all, her song HAD made him hurt quite a bit.

She seemed unperturbed, "Oh you know. They see a pretty demon, and want to get on with her..I mean, how do you even know I'm female?"

"Of course you are, love!" Lorne said, interlocking his fingers, and resting his pointed chin on his thumbs, "And I can also tell from your…er…pleasant song that you have come a long way to be what you are…"

He was bluffing, of course. All he could really make out of the girls song was pain, despair, and more pain. However, he must have hit a nerve. She raised her eyes, twin pools of garnet, and transfixed him with her gaze. Lorne couldn't move, couldn't breathe. Talk about getting caught up in someone's eyes!

"_What do you mean_?" Lorne heard a voice fill his ears with a roaring sensation. It wasn't the voice of the young demon across from him. It was the voice of pure evil itself. It was the voice of-

Then, as quickly as it had come, it was gone. The girl lowered her eyes.

"I'm sorry," She said quietly, "I…there's something inside of me…and…it doesn't like to be stirred…"

"No, I can imagine not.." Lorne took a deep breathe. He took a sip of his drink, "tell me, what is your name?"

"Kirazu.." She said hastily, eyes darting back and forth, "And I really must be going….now that it has awaken…"

"Hold on minute, sweetheart!" Lorne's hand shot out and caught hers, "If you're running from someone or something, this would be your safest place to hide."

"I don't run." Kirazu said levelly, those scarlet eyes flashing, "And I never…ever hide!"


	2. Trapping Circles!

Lorne was a civil demon (He was also sure there was an oxymoron in there somewhere), and in any other instance, he would have knocked politely on the front door to the Hyperion hotel….but not tonight.

Tonight Lorne inserted a claw into the lock on the front door, wriggled it around, and heard a satisfying click as the lock caught, and the door swung open.

"Terrible sorry to have to burst in like this, but it really is very important!" He called, blinking. His demon eyes got used to the light (or lack of it) as he stepped cautiously down into the main lobby. Why where all the lights off…..and where was everybody?

"Alright……" Lorne muttered, eyes narrowed, taking a long step foreward "What's going-AHH!"

All at once, a cage of sizzling, electric blue energy sprang up around him, attacking every nerve in his body with a wracking force. Lorne fell hard onto the floor, and lay there, cursing.

"Now _that's_ a lovely touch…"

Closer examination revealed that someone (And Lorne had a good idea who) had drawn up an advanced Trapping Circle for demons, and had written out the elaborate designon the floor. He had walked right into a trap that most likely was not meant for him.

"At least I hope it's not meant for me…" Lorne muttered, "I know that hate my jokes, but I didn't think it was _this_ bad…."

"Lorne! Oh my gosh! Lorne!"

He raised his head a few inches off the ground, and made out the shape of Fred coming dashing down the stairs, her hair flying out behind her. She skidded slightly on her flip-flops as she came down on the landing, but kept her balance as she dashed to where the Trapping Circle was drawn.

"Nice to see you to, dear!" Lorne said lightly, "Is this how you greet everyone now?"

"No…Oh my gosh, I am so sorry!" Fred whimpered, removing one of the runes in the circle, breaking the cage of energy, "Ouch..sorry Lorne…we were…uh…expecting company other than yours."

"Did she trip it? Fred?" Lorne heard Angel shout from somewhere above him. The vampire didn't bother with the stairs, and instead leaped from the second floor directly to the lobby.

"Quite the contrary, my friend." Lorne said, a little out of breathe as he dusted his suit off, and rose cautiously, "How are you?"

Not Fred wasn't the only one looking sheepish. Angel lowered a large two handeled broad sword that he had been packing, and grinned like a little kid, "Uh….hey Lorne. Sorry about….yeah. We were expecting a Tzuene demon"

"If you're trying to bait the Tzuene with the three red horns on her forehead, rather than on her neck, then I regret to inform you that she's dead." Lorne said lightly,

"Outside of Caritas, so I am not responsible…shame, she was such a lovely thing…"

At that moment, Cordy, Gun, and Wesley came out of nowhere, too. All three of looked like they were ready for a pretty nasty fight. Gun was holding a large picaxe that would have taken two normal men to carry, Wesley had a crossbow, and Cordy tried to look innocent with a wicked two sided axeblade at her side.

'Uh..Lorne says the Tzuene is dead." Fred said, lowering her eyes.

"You got caught in the Trapping Circle, didn't you, Lorne?" Cordy sighed, her eyes looking from Fred holding the rune stone, to the Deathwok demon.

"It appears so!" Lorne said. If he had to endure one more bout of nerve-wracking pain, he didn't know what he would do!

"Well…uh..then I guess I won't be needing this." Gun said, and he rested the picaxe up against a small coffee table that Angel liked to do crossword puzzles on, "Gee, this is awkward!"

While Fred and Wesley began clearing up the Trapping Circle, Lorne took a few steps to his left, and plucked Cordy on the shoulder.

"A word, sweetheart!" He murmured, and pulled the woman to a lonely corner of the room.

"Ok, what's up, Lorne" Cordelia asked, tossing her head.


End file.
